


silver crosses and holy water

by forestday



Category: TWICE (Band)
Genre: F/F, Fantasy AU, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, dahyun is a cleric, jihyo is vamp, yeri is a kid - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-28
Updated: 2020-01-26
Packaged: 2021-02-24 19:28:08
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 11,393
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22003234
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/forestday/pseuds/forestday
Summary: In which Jihyo is the leader of the most powerful vampire clan in the kingdom and Dahyun is the cleric trying to heal her.
Relationships: Kim Dahyun/Park Jisoo | Jihyo
Comments: 20
Kudos: 99





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> pls ignore any mistakes.

The first thing Jihyo was taught when she was turned centuries ago, was to stay away from the church. Nayeon for some reason was very particular in forcing it into her head, she didn't really understand why at the time but she trusted Nayeon.

_"Stay away from the church, Jihyo. That's how you survive as long as I have."_

_"Why are you talking like that? You told me you only turned three years ago."_

_"I'm alive, am I not?"_

_"But you're not? We're both very dead, Nayeon"_

_"Oh for fucks sake, stop talking and stay away from the church, okay?"_

Nayeon's advice had kept them both alive (or not) so far and they haven't had many run-ins with the church so she forgets about it most of the time, but when a cleric is chasing her around a graveyard, she remembers the warning vividly. 

Why is there a tiny cleric in robes too big, chasing the leader of the most powerful coven around in a graveyard? Was this a new tactic implemented by the church to control her coven? Why was she, out of all people, letting this tiny cleric chase her around like this? Maybe Jihyo should just drain the kid and be done with it.

"C-could y-you stop for one minute please? I just want to h-heal you" The cleric is slightly out of breath but has been keeping up with Jihyo for a while now (much to her surprise).

Jihyo eyes widen and she stops running out of surprise. She's not sure she heard that right because a cleric trying to heal a vampire was not something she would have expected. The cleric doesn't seem to expect Jihyo to stop so suddenly as they trip over their robes and face plants into the ground. The girl doesn't move and Jihyo starts to wonder if she's accidently broken her. She inches closer, and prods the girl with her foot. The girl groans and Jihyo jumps back. She hides behind a gravestone ready to run if the cleric is tricking her in an attempt to purify her soul.

The cleric shoots up and once she sees Jihyo hiding slightly behind the gravestone, her ears and cheeks rapidly go red.

"That wasn't meant to happen... I'm usually not this clumsy I promise! I just saw the cut on your arm and you were looking quite pale so I thought you needed some help but then you started running so i started running and then I had to cast some buffs on myself because wow, you are very fast. Have you ever thought about trying out for for a track team? I'm getting off track, haha track, do you get it, can I please heal your cut? I promise you'll feel better once I do."

Jihyo blinks at the ramblings of the pouting girl in front of her and looks down at the small cut she got from sparring with Nayeon. She really doesn't recognise Jihyo at all. The whole city is plasted with her wanted posters and this clueless cleric really does not know who she is. Jihyo is also pretty sure if she tried healing her it would cause a vast amount of discomfort instead.

"Do you really not know who I am?"

"Why, am I supposed to know? Oh my god, are you a lady of the court? I'm so so sorry I should've asked for you title, I've never seen you there before so I just assumed you weren't. I am very sorry again my lady, duchess, or your majesty, but you don't look like Tzuyu so I don't think you're the queen an-"

At this point, Jihyo stops paying attention because she can very clearly see a wanted poster of her own face directly behind the rambling cleric.

"Oh no I'm not a lady of the court, don't worry about that how about you go heal me over there and not here." Jihyo grabs the girl's hand quickly and guides her away from the ominous wanted poster. She doesn't really want to find out what the cleric would do if she finds out the truth and Jihyo can't really bring herself to hurt her when she's swimming in oversized robes and sporting a pout that rivals Chaeyoung's.

The cleric gives a wide smile and Jihyo thinks she's going to be purified with just how happy she looks.

"Really? I'm very good at this I promise!"

"What's your name, girl?" Jihyo says quickly trying to delay the inevitable. She really needs to get better at pretending to be human. Nayeon had nagged at her for the last century but all she did was roll her eyes because who needs to be human anyways. She now has many regrets.

"Oh, how could I forget, I'm Kim Dahyun! What's yours?"

For some strange reason the name is really familar to Jihyo's ears. She'll think about it later, right now she really needs to get out of this situation without getting healed.

"You can call me, Ji"

Dahyun should really be suspicious of Jihyo now but all she does is give her an eye smile that makes Jihyo feel warm inside, which really shouldn't be possible but she isn't going to question it. 

"Hi Ji! I'm just going to grab your hand and cast a spell, okay?" Dahyun moves their still joined hands closer to her but Jihyo pulls away almost immediately. Dahyun tilts her head, confused, and Jihyo doesn't think she could get more adorable.

"Sorry I'm... allergic... to healing spells" Jihyo says hesistantly, wincing when she finishes. It's not really believable for a human to be allergic to healing spells. She starts growing out her fangs, she really doesn't want to do this to such an adorable girl but what else could she do to protect herself.

"Oh! I'm sorry to hear that. Can I use these bandages instead, then? There's no healing spell involved." Her voice is laced with concern and with that Jihyo's fangs shoot back up so quickly she nearly gives herself whiplash.

Jihyo quite frankly is a bit dumbfounded. For some reason, she has met with the purest cleric the land has ever seen and now she has an inexplicable urge to protect her from anything and everything. Jihyo reaches out her hand and places it into Dahyun's, allowing for her to put the bandages on. Dahyun's eye light up and she immediately produces some bandages in her hands.

Jihyo's eyes widen in surprise because she was definitely not holding them before. Maybe she was hiding them in her robes or her sleeves. Was Dahyun a witch as well? She doesn't have anymore time to think of where the bandages came from because she feels a small discomfort on her arm where the bandage is covering her cut.

"Hey Dahyun, is there anything on these bandages by any chance?"

"Yeah! They've been soaked in holy water. Is that a problem?" Dahyun replies, sticking her tongue out, fiddling with bandage so it stays on properly.

Jihyo shakes her head, the holy water doesn't really affect her anymore so she just watches the cleric work diligently on her arm. She really does look cute concentrating on such a small wound like this.

"I'm almost done, theres just one more thing left to do." Dahyun grins at her and Jihyo's heart melts a tiny bit more.

Dahyun leans down to give Jihyo a kiss where the cut is and Jihyo thinks her heart is beating again. She's about to express her gratitude but the clocktower rings in the distance and Dahyun pulls away.

"I have to go now, it was nice meeting you, Ji!" and just like that Dahyun disappears from her sight, leaving her with thoughts of oversized robes and eye smiles.

//

Dahyun has been missing from the palace for approximately three hours and thirty-three minutes and Tzuyu is about to throw her best friend out of the window when she returns because she has been dealing with numerous old priests asking where the cleric. She sees another priest walking towards so she does what any normal person would do. She runs away. Tzuyu's position as a Queen dictates that she should not be running anywhere at any given time but desperate times calls for desperate measures because there are now a swarm of old men looking for her and her best friend. She casts a swiftness buff on herself just like Dahyun had taught her, as well as a muffling spell to hide her footsteps.

" 'I'm going out, Tzuyu. Cover for me Tzuyu.' Leaving me here to deal with old men who can't bloody listen to me when I say I don't know where you are," Tzuyu mutters to herself, finally reaching her favourite hiding spot. The advisors still haven't managed to find this hideout so it was automatically a favourite.

"Aww did you miss me that much, TzuTzu?" dahyun says in lilting voice, climbing through the window with ease.

"I will murder you! The priests kept asking me where you were."

Dahyun gasps in faux shock, covering her mouth with a hand.

"The all powerful queen, murdering the holy daughter, what a scandal! I bet you the press will love it."

Tzuyu glares at Dahyun before they both fall into giggles. She reaches for Dahyun's hand and immediately they hands are enclosed around each other's.

"You know I'm only a figurehead Dahyun, I have no power." Tzuyu's tone is flat, but Dahyun grips her hand harder and pulls her close.

"You promised me you would stop saying that. I'll make you important, so important they can't ignore you anymore, I promised you didn't I?" Dahyun says it with so much hope, that Tzuyu can't help but believe her a little. She loves Dahyun for trying even if she's all but resigned to her life as a puppet.

They sit in a comfortable silence until Tzuyu remembers why she's even in her hideout in the first place.

"Are you going to tell me where you went, or do I have to send Momo to go find out what you did?" Tzuyu asks.

"Hey! I didn't do anything" Tzuyu just stares at Dahyun.

"Okay, fine! I was messing around with a vampire" Dahyun confesses.

"You were WHAT?!" Tzuyu yells.

"Well I was going to purify her but she was really pretty so I just played dumb instead."

" Are you crazy?! How does that even happen? Did she not attack you?" Tzuyu at this point is shaking Dahyun with a determination that she hasn't seen since before her coronation.

"Relax Tzu. She was pretending to be human and let me tell you she was absolutely terrible at it. She told me she was allergic to healing spells and then she started growing out her fangs" Dahyun says, giggling at the memory.

"She can control her fangs? Dahyun! You know how dangerous those vampires are," Tzuyu begins shaking Dahyun again, trying to drill her point into Dahyun's head.

"But you should've seen how pretty she was Tzuyu, how could i purify someone that pretty, I am 99% sure that's against the law,"

Tzuyu groans at Dahyun's words, burying her face into her hands. Of course her best friend would mess around with a vampire she found too pretty. She remembers when Dahyun had brought Momo to her because she thought the elf was pretty as well.

_"Um.. Dahyun who is this?"_

_"This is Momo! Isn't she pretty?"_

_"She is, but I don't understand why she's half naked on my bed,"_

_"Don't question miracles, TzuTzu!"_

At least Momo is a good friend and an excellent bodyguard, Dahyun however was chaos personified and Tzuyu knew she was going to die early because of it. She makes herself think of other things because if she allows herself to think of the insane things that Dahyun has done, she would give herself an aneurysm.

"Did you get your vampire's name? There's only a few known vampires that can control their fangs at will,"

"About that..." The hesitance in Dahyun's words is telling and Tzuyu knows she's about to strangle Dahyun for doing something stupid.

"What did you do?"

"So the vamp might've been Jihyo... Wow, look at the time I have to go right now, goodbye," She moves to jump out of the window again but is stopped when the back of her robes is being pulled back and she's thrown to the ground.

"Are you telling me that you were messing around with the leader of the most powerful vampire clan and the underworld?" There's fire in Tzuyu's eyes and Dahyun becomes impossibly smaller in her robes.

"She didn't hurt me I'm fine, she just thought I was a clueless cleric that's it, not the holy daughter. I stole these cleric robes for a reason, Tzu"

"I'm not worried about you getting hurt. I know how powerful you are even if you keep trying to hide it. I was worried you hurt her or annoyed her enough to leave this place. She's one of the only reasons why the poor can still live in the capital. I can't have anything risk that, Dahyun." Tzuyu hands are trembling, gripping tight to Dahyun's robes.

Tzuyu knows how powerless she is, when its her advisors pulling the strings making the kingdom weak and allowing the rich to fill their pockets with greed and leaving the rest with nothing. Knows that if she acts out any more than she already has, she'll follow the same fate as her beloved parents. She hates that she has to rely on Jihyo to ensure her people live but when her hands are esssentially tied behind her back, she thinks she really doesn't have a choice.

"I'm sorry Tzu, if it makes you feel better I only gave her the bandages with the inferior holy water on them" Tzuyu smiles at Dahyun's attempt to lift the mood. They both know holy water doesn't affect vampires like Jihyo, not at her age anyways.

"When she finds out who you are, she's going to think I sent you to do my dirty work and hate me even more. I'm surprised she hasn't got any assassins after me yet," Tzuyu scoffs but all of the sudden Dahyun is up off the ground and staring at her with excitement.

"I have a fantastic idea!" Dahyun's eyes are lit up and Tzuyu braces herself for when she inevitably has to follow through with Dahyun's outrageous plan.

//

There are fingers clicking in front of Jihyo but she has yet to notice as her mind wanders back to a pure smile and oversized robes.

:"Hello? Hyo? We're about to start the meeting. Stop spacing out." Nayeon is still snapping her fingers in Jihyo's face by the time she awakens from her daydream. She pushes away Nayeon's hand and motions for the meeting to start, ignoring the sounds of protest from her.

"The Queen is raising taxes again. At this rate, no one will have the money or resources to pay for our goods anymore," Chaeyoung starts, the bitterness in her voice in evident.

"The Queen is not allowing the peasants to approach the clerics for healing either," Nayeon adds.

"She's restricting our blood supply, Ji. We can't have this continue any further." Sana states grimly.

Jihyo sighs. Since Tzuyu's coronation, all she has done is bring greed and ruin into the kingdom. Her slow stranglehold of the capital was getting too much for the citizens and the clan. Her parents were actual capable rulers, willing to work with her clan to help the kingdom strengthen before their untimely demise. Tzuyu, Jihyo found, was a much greater evil than vampires were. Jihyo had even begun to smuggle food into the capital because of Tzuyu's new policies, crippling the poor, and allowing the rich to get even fatter. She rubs at the bandage, allows herself to calm down. The holy water barely even bothering her anymore.

"Chae, draft a plan, we're overthrowing the queen. We can't have the people suffer anymore. It's affecting our meals after all." Chaeyoungs grins at that. Her displeasure towards Tzuyu was well known, and Jihyo had no doubt that Chaeyoung would come up with a perfect plan.

"Of course, Ji-" She's stopped by a knock on the door.

Everyone in the room turns and stares at the door. Jihyo can hear three heartbeats, there were three people who were not undead, outside of their meeting room and she has no clue on how they managed to get inside. No one moves, and the three individuals outisde of the room seem to think that was enough warning and open the door.

Dahyun causally walks in with Queen Tzuyu and her bodyguard looking around for someone, ignoring the countless bloodthirsty vampires ready to jump on them at Jihyo's command. Jihyo however is too stunned to say anything because:

1\. The cute cleric that tried healing her is in company with the queen they just decided to overthrow.

2\. They know and were able to infiltrate the base of her coven without even a scratch on any of them.

3\. Tzuyu and her bodyguard are way too relaxed in a room full of vampires and Jihyo, considering she was the one who ordered her wanted poster and her death.

_(4. Dahyun is in robes that fit her properly)_

Once she sees Jihyo's face, a grin appears on Dahyun's face and her eyes are twinkling with mischief.

"Hey, Ji. Wanna help us start a revolution?"


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Talks go awry and Momo doesn't remember a face

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ignore any mistakes pls.

A tense silence fills the room and no one moves.

Jihyo blinks at the words before turning to Nayeon to see if she heard the same things as she did. The gaping mouth and unblinking eyes give her answer and she sighs. The others aren't any better, Sana is moving her head between Jihyo, Dahyun and the Queen so fast, she wouldn't be surprised her head falls off at the end of it. She turns to see how Chaeyoung stares at Tzuyu, there's hatred in her eyes and clenched fists hanging from her sides. Jihyo can tell that Dahyun's words haven't entered Chaeyoung's mind, only focusing on the enemy in front of her. She can only hope Chaeyoung can control herself.

"So?" Dahyun asks, her wide smile still on her face, waving at a vampire that is growling at her.

Tzuyu's bodyguard isn't bothered in the slightest by the vampires that currently hissing at them either, she just smiles and waves at Jihyo from her position of hugging Tzuyu's back, head propped up on her shoulder. Tzuyu is a bit stiff, but relaxed nevertheless. She's leaning back onto the elf behind her as large doe eyes sweep the room, stopping for a second at the sight of Chaeyoung, before settling on Jihyo.

"Why would we help the queen so hellbent on destroying us?" Jihyo finally replies, fingers drumming on the arm of her throne.

Tzuyu stiffens at the comment.

"About that..." Dahyun starts but is stopped by Tzuyu who steps forward and bows her head 90 degrees.

"There aren't enough words to say how sorry I am and how grateful I am for your presence in the city. You've kept my people alive while I only tried to keep my own," Tzuyu's regal voice echoes throughout the chamber.

Well that was unexpected to say the least. The room ushes into another silence and Nayeon's jaw drops again. Jihyo knows what Tzuyu's words imply and she knows Nayeon does to. Jihyo lets out a sigh, her thoughts racing through her mind. They've got the situation all wrong, they need to change their plans after all.

"You should've just died then," Chaeyoung growls out, her voice bitter with hatred and years of mourning. Jihyo curses silently, she should've called Chaeyoung closer to her.

Tzuyu looks up to the voice and sighs like she expected the interruption.

"I'm sorry about your family, Son Chaeyoung."

"Bullshit." Chaeyoung replies bitterly, stepping forward.

"Stop." Jihyo voice booms out and Chaeyoung goes rigid.

"Oh I wouldn't do that if I were you, Momo is very protective," Dahyun says cheerfully, her hands held tight onto her staff. Momo on the other hand has a silver arrow notched and aimed right at her heart.

The vampires get more aggravated at that action, growling and baring their teeth but Jihyo makes no move to order them to attack the intruders. She just stares at Dahyun, wondering what her next move will be. Dahyun however seems to be done with this conversation, placing her staff on her back and holding out her hands to both Momo and Tzuyu.

"Well this has been a lovely chat and all but we have places to go and people to see. I'll let you guys think about it. Ji, you know where to find me! I'll be there at midnight tonight and I'll even change your bandage for you if you agree," Dahyun winks at her before they all leave without a trace of their presence left behind.

She doesn't even get to enjoy the wink when she feels that all eyes are on her now and Jihyo groans. She orders everyone except her inner circle out and braces for the most tiring conversation of her life.

"Ji? Would you like to tell me why you know the holy daughter of the church? And why she's changing your bandages?" Nayeon's tone isn't angry but the saccharine smile on her face tells Jihyo she's in trouble.

"Wait, holy daughter?," Jihyo's confusion is met with pointed stares from Nayeon, Sana and Chaeyoung, who rolls her eyes for good measure.

"Of course she doesn't know," Nayeon mutters under her breath. She digs around her pockets until she finds today's newspaper. She scans the front page briefly before shoving it into Jihyo's face.

"Who is this?"

"Dahyun." Jihyo's reply is instantaneous, she would recognise Dahyun anywhere by now.

Nayeon rolls her eyes, moving to point at the headline.

_Holy Daughter Greets the Masses_

Oh.

Jihyo really is in big trouble.

"What was the first thing I told you, Jihyo?"

"Stay away from the church," Jihyo mutters.

"Yes! and what did you do with that information?" The saccharine smile is back.

"Talk to a pretty cleric,"

"Not just any pretty cleric, THE pretty cleric. You had one job! and now we're probably going to join this insane revolution because you're whipped for a girl you barely know," Jihyo knows they're all undead and all but with how fast Nayeon is talking, she really thinks that she's going to run out of breath.

"I'm not whipped," Jihyo protests.

Nayeon doesn't speak, just pulls up the the newspaper again to show Jihyo, Dahyun's face again. A smile is immediately on her face and she rubs her bandage. All three of them groan.

Are you really going to tell me you won't follow this girl into a war?"

"Look we were going to overthrow the queen but we all know how hard that was going to be. There are things in the castle even I can't handle. With the queen and the holy daughter by our side we have a better chance at overthrowing whoever is actually in charge." Jihyo argues.

Nayeon grumbles in agreement and Sana nods meekly. They know they can't talk Jihyo out of any of her decisions anyways and she does make some sense (that won't stop Nayeon from nagging Jihyo for hours though). Chaeyoung however doesn't comment.

"Chae?" Jihyo asks.

"Are you really going to help the queen, Jihyo?" Chaeyoung's voice is small, looking down at her feet.

"We're not helping the queen, Chaeyoung, we're helping the kingdom. The queen must pay for her sins but first we need her to know our enemy. She cant' be harmed." Jihyo commands. She hates using her authority on Chaeyoung out of all people but she does what she must.

Chaeyoung opens her mouth to protest but stops. She sets her jaw instead, disappearing from the room.

"Sana, go after her."

"On it!" Sana says eagerly, running after Chaeyoung.

Jihyo is left alone with Nayeon and she knows how this is how its all going to end. Jihyo tries to get up from her throne but is stopped by a smiling Nayeon. Nayeon pushes her back down and grabs a chair for herself. Jihyo squirms uncomfortably. She's the leader of a powerful vampire clan but the sire's bond isn't weak even after all these years or maybe its because Nayeon nagging terrifies her. 

Either way, Jihyo is going to regret not bringing ear plugs with her.

//

"That went well," Dahyun starts as they inch their way closer to the garden gates. They're walking hand in hand, Tzuyu in the middle and Momo and Dahyun by either side of her.

"I didn't shoot anyone so I'll call that a success," Momo grins moving to high-five Dahyun when she offers her hand, waving it in front of a silent Tzuyu.

"Tzu?" Dahyun asks. She knows something's wrong when she doesn't even reprimand them for their silliness.

"I didn't expect to see Chaeyoung," Tzuyu looks down at her feet.

"The Son family heir..." Dahyun remembers the girl. She remembers what her family did for Tzuyu's parents and what the advisors did in retaliation. "You know what happened wasn't your fault,"

"I ordered them to die," Tzuyu says matter-of-factly.

"They were going to kill them anyways Tzuyu, no matter what. What you did ensured that the family survived. Even if it was only one of them." Dahyun comes to a stop, and pulls Tzuyu into a tight hug. "You're doing what you can Tzu, no one can judge you for that,"

Tzuyu hugs Dahyun tighter, she loves Dahyun for her optimism but she knows she's commited too many sins to not be judged.

"Come on, you need to help me get ready for my date!" Dahyun giggles, releasing Tzuyu. She can't wait to see Jihyo now that she probably knows who she is.

"This early?" Momo asks, the sun had only just set.

"Yup! I'm going to visit my brother before it starts."

"Oh, tell him I said hi,"

"I will. Now hurry up, we're going to be late!"

Dahyun grabs Tzuyu's hand again and tries to lead the three of them through the garden gates but Momo looks to the forest instead. A robin comes from within the forest, landing onto Momo's outstretched fingers. The robin chirps at Momo and Momo nods in understandment.

"Mo?"

Momo scratches the robin's head as a thank you and allows it to fly off to continue its surveillance.

"It looks we have a little vampire trying to visit us, Tzu," Momo says simply.

Tzuyu's eyes grow dim before they set with hardness and with that Dahyun deflates. Dahyun hates the regal side of Tzuyu, despises how Tzuyu talks calmly and hides her emotions deep down, hidden away in the pockets of her soul that the advisors haven't been able to find and use yet. Alas, it's how they've survived the kingdom for so long and Dahyun can't bring herself to stop this side when its kept Tzuyu alive.

She lets go of Tzuyu.

"Don't do anything stupid, I'll go get ready by myself," Dahyun sets off after giving them both a small smile.

Momo and Tzuyu watch the retreating figure walk into the castle and Tzuyu clenches her fists before releasing the tension from her body.

"Come on. We have a guest to welcome, Momo." Tzuyu's regal voice returns and Momo obeys.

//

Chaeyoung knows she shouldn't be in the palace at all but before she knew it her feet had taken her here. So here she is in the palace of her worst enemy, sneaking her way past guards trying to find her way to Tzuyu. She hasn't really figured out what she's going to do once they meet but she'll let her instincts take over and she'll figure out the rest after.

Chaeyoung knows that Jihyo is meeting Dahyun and she knows how its going to end but she needs answers, before she obeys Jihyo and helps the last person she ever wants to help. Jihyo's orders are absolute, and she knows there's no way around it. She wonders if Tzuyu feels any guilt for what's she's done to her family and countless others.

She's creeping along the garden, nearing the palace hall. She's only had to drain one guard so far so she calls it a success. There's only a few more yards she has to travel before she arrives inside she just needs to wait for these guards to pass. She sucks in a large breath and exhales. Even without the need for oxygen, it helps calm Chaeyoung's nerves.

"Hello Chaeyoung, Are you here to see Tzuyu?" A voice from behind her appears without notice.

"Oh shit!" Chaeyoung screams into her hand at the sudden appearance of Tzuyu's bodyguard.

"I didn't mean to scare you. I'm Momo, " Momo grins innocently at Chaeyoung, offering a hand.

"Uh..Hi," Chaeyoung says uncertainly, shaking the hand half-heartedly.

Usually in this situation, Chaeyoung drains the person who finds her dry but she has a feeling it's not really an option with Momo, especially after the whole aiming a silver arrow at her heart incident. Besides Momo doesn't look like a bad person, she kind of looks like a puppy if Chaeyoung thinks about it.

"She's this way," Momo grabs Chaeyoung's hand softly and pulls her deeper into the maze-like garden.

Chaeyoung doesn't really know what to do when there's a pretty girl holding her hand so she stays quiet and observes instead. The first thing she sees is the pointed ears that Momo sports and she automatically knows what race she belongs too. She frowns, remembering what the kingdom has done to elves. She can't figure out for the life for her why Momo is here protecting the Queen despite it.

"Why are you protecting a murderer, Momo? I know what they did to your people,"

"No, you really don't," Momo's words are short but there's no malice or anger behind them. "I know what you think of her, Chaeyoung but you just have to meet her, don't you?"

"Aren't you worried about what I'll do to her?" Chaeyoung asks timidly, Momo is really messing with her head.

"Nope, have fun," There's a carefree smile on Momo's face and Chaeyoung really is confused but Momo let's go of her hand and pushes her further into the garden and disappears.

"Where the fuck...?" Even with Chaeyoung's vampiric senses, she can't even sense Momo anymore. She finds a heartbeat in the middle of the garden instead and immediately sets off in search for it.

She follows the heartbeat to find the queen sitting in her chair seemingly waiting for her.

"I'ts nice seeing you again Chaeyoung," Tzuyu says softly.

"You..." Chaeyoung feels the resentment rise within, breaking through the shackles she's placed her feelings in.

"I'm truly sorry about your family Chaeyoung, I hope you know I didn't want them to die," Tzuyu ignores what Chaeyoung says, goes to speak her mind instead.

"I know you murdered other families in cold blood. Don't pretend like you cared about mine," The retort is instant and Tzuyu sighs.

"Son Jeong-Hoon,"

"What?" Chaeyoung recognises the name and her heart clenches. Her little brother she failed to protect.

"Son Haeun, Son Hajoon, Son Junghee..." Tzuyu rattles off the names of Chaeyoung's family, her brother, her parents, uncles, aunts, even servants.

All the names Chaeyoung has etched into her soul so she never forgets. She remembers every small detail about all of them, she remembers their last words to her as well. Tzuyu however, says the names like its a shopping list. Like they're just

"What the fuck are you doing?" Anger rising within Chaeyoung. Tzuyu has no right to tarnish their names by uttering them with her filthy mouth.

"I remember all of their names, Chaeyoung. They're all in here," Tzuyu points at her heart. "I remember every single person I've sent to their death. I ordered them to die because if I didn't, it was going to be me on that guillotine. I've let six families die so I could live." Tzuyu's voice is steady, as if she wasn't admitting to her worst sins.

"Shut up," Chaeyoung mutters, her bottom lip bleeding as her fangs dig into it. She doesn't want to listen to this, she doesn't want to hear excuses from Tzuyu when she's talking so calmly. She should be begging for mercy, not this. Chaeyoung doesn't want this. She doesn't need to breathe, there isn't even a beat in her chest thumping rythmically but why does it feel like the walls are closing in on her?

"I know I have to pay for my sins but first I need to make sure my kingdom survives. You can kill, torture, or do whatever you want with me but only after we get rid of the advisors and make sure the kingdom is safe." Tzuyu continues anyways.

"Shut the fuck UP! You don't get to tell me to do shit! You were the one who ordered their deaths. You were the one who just watched as their heads rolled onto the mud. You're not the one who had to go collect their headless bodies from a mass grave. You're not the one who had to tell a little girl her parents weren't coming home," Chaeyoung screams angrily, tears in her eyes, rushing forward to pin Tzuyu to the garden wall. "I don't care about your kingdom, I Just want you to pay," Chaeyoung snarls up into Tzuyu's face.

"I know and I'm sorry but you have to wait," Tzuyu says calmly, ignoring the pressing hands around her neck. She utters a sleeping spell and Chaeyoung is slumped against her in a heartbeat. She moves to pull Chaeyoung up by her armpits and Momo is already next to her waiting for her orders.

"Momo, take her back to her clan," Tzuyu says passively, gently moving Chaeyoung into Momo's waiting arms.

"Hmm okay but you know Dahyun isn't going to like the conversation you just had,"

"That's why she won't find out." Tzuyu stares pointedly at Momo.

Momo stares back at her, looking for cracks in her facade but Tzuyu knows she won't find one. She's perfected this art years ago. Momo sighs, resigning herself to Tzuyu's request. She throws Chaeyoung over her shoulder before turning back to Tzuyu.

"I hope you know that we're not letting you die so easily," And with that, Momo jumps into the forest, leaving Tzuyu by herself.

"I know," Tzuyu whispers.

She lets herself slide down the garden wall, dirtying her gown with mud and grass. She rests her head against the wall behind, closing her eyes after that exhausting exchange. Instead of the peaceful darkness she craves, she feels countless eyes on her staring at her with pity. She knows who they are and why they're here but she can't bring herself to face them again, not after today. So she keeps her eyes closed and voices out an apology to no one in particular.

"I'm sorry,"

//

Momo doesn't get far before she feels a presence in front of her, she's not concerned though. The trees tell her that they're not going to hurt her. The presence jumps down from a tree in front of her and she is met with a pink-haired girl wearing a hooded cape.

"Hi, pretty girl, could you give that girl on your shoulder back to me?" The vampire says in a lilting tone, a sweet smile on her face, showing off her fangs.

"Why?" Momo tilts her head.

"Well you see that girl is a part of my clan," She points at Chaeyoung. "We met earlier, remember?"

Momo stares blankly at the girl, trying to remember any faces that look like the one in front of her. Nope. She doesn't know who this girl is.

"No?"

The smile is knocked off the vampire's face and disbelief fills her features instead.

"I was standing next to Jihyo?" She prompts.

"But you're not Nayeon."

"You remember Nayeon but not me?" The girl is exasperated, the offence evident in her words but Momo heeds her no mind.

"Yup. If you excuse I need to take her back now. It was nice meeting you, pretty vampire. I'll remember your face." Momo moves Chaeyoung's body to sit more confortably on her shoulder and sets off once more.

Sana is stunned into silence, if her heart was still beating she's sure that there would be a blush decorating her face. This hasn't happened before, she's the one usually flirting not the other way around. She wakes up from her stupor to see the quickly retreating figure of Tzuyu's bodyguard and Chaeyoung and hurries to catch up.

"Hey, wait up!" Sana yells, running towards them.

//

Jihyo arrives at the graveyard a minute past midnight to find Dahyun sitting in front of a grave. She doesn't say anything though, just moves to sit next to her. Jihyo notices the faded name on the grave but doesn't recognise it.

_Kim Myung-soo_

"How was the walk here?" Dahyun asks, grinning at Jihyo. Jihyo smiles back. It's an automatic response when anyone sees Dahyun.

"Quite pleasant actually, only one man catcalled me. I do suggest you don't walk through the farmlands though." Dahyun chuckles, saluting Jihyo.

"WIll you be joining us, Ji?" Dahyun doesn't beat around the bush it seems and Jihyo appreciates it. She's talked to too many diplomats and politicians who fluff their words with poison.

"I don't really have a choice, do I? They're messing with our blood supply." Jihyo pushes Dahyun playfully. "Now tell me who else is in this little revolution,"

"It's not little! It's going to be a big revolution," Dahyun grumbles rubbing her shoulder, and Jihyo hides a smile. :"Joohyun's coven and Jeongyeon's pack agreed to help." Jihyo's jaw drops.

"How did you manage to get them to agree to this? They've been quite committed to their no war policy."

Joohyun is nearly as old as Jihyo and she know's for a fact her coven doesn't participate in a war for anyone, she's tried. Jeongyeon's pack of werewolves are similar, only moving when they feel like it and never against the the church, they were a presence far too powerful to disobey.

"They owe me a few favours is all," Dahyun says casually.

"Enough favours to go against the church?" Jihyo asks increduously but Dahyun doesn's answer, just smiles brightly at Jihyo instead.

"One of your vampires visited Tzuyu by the way but don't worry Momo returned her to your base in one piece." Dahyun speaks, changing the subject.

Jihyo groans. There's only one vampire in her clan with enough stupidity (or bravery) to infiltrate the castle. She really needs to talk to Chaeyoung about controlling herself. This is like the first time Jihyo turned her all over again, just with mortal enemies though not with blood.

Thinking about it now though, how did Dahyun find her in the first place. They managed to get past the elaborate security measures that Jihyo herself had put in. It was even hidden with powerful magic but it hadn't stopped Dahyun and her guests in the slightest.

"My base is hidden by Joohyun's magic, how in the world did you find it?" Jihyo wonders out loud.

"Birds." Dahyun speaks with confidence, like its the only explanation needed.

"Birds?" Jihyo asks confusedly.

"Birds." Dahyun repeats definitively, nodding her head dramatically.

JIhyo doesn't understand at all but it doesn't matter, Dahyun is adorable.

"Okay birds. Now will the birds help me change my bandage or will you?"

"I can do that, the birds are only good at surveillance, I'm good at bandages, I promise! I brought the stronger bandages this time as well," Dahyun's eyes brighten at the mention at bandages and Jihyo can't help but pinch Dahyun's cheeks.

"Okay, bandage me up, and tell me any ideas you have for your big revolution," Dahyun huffs at the jab but gives her a warm eyesmile anyways. She brings out the bandages out of thin air again and gets to work, removing the old bandage and starting anew.

"How do you feel about breaking into the most secure prison in the kingdom?" Dahyun asks innocently as Jihyo gapes at her.

Well Dahyun has some drastic plans it seems.

"Why don't you tell me more first?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> next time: Jihyo takes control and plans are made.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jihyo deals with an issue and plans are implemented

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: a lot of violence and some slight gore. 
> 
> ignore mistakes pls. english may be my first language but i am terrible at proofreading

Jihyo is lounging on her throne waiting for the first meeting to start when she feels vampires from her own clan surround her. She sighs heavily, she just wants one peaceful day. It's certainly been quite some time since the last attempt of overthrowing her, but they never learn it seems.

"Oh? What's this? Are some of my little vampires staging a mutiny?" Jihyo mocks. She counts the vampires surrounding her, there's only ten. Well, at least this would be fun little excercise.

"You're not fit to lead us. We don't want a leader who works with the enemy," The vampire in front of her snarls.

Jihyo rolls her eyes at the words, they really don't understand anything. She moves quickly, appearing in front of the ring leader in a blink of an eye.

"Hi," Jihyo smiles, showing off her fangs before grabbing their surprised face, and shoving her bandaged arm into the vampire's mouth. The screams echo the room, their body melting into nothing. She should thank Dahyun for the stronger holy water, its quite useful.

Nine left.

Jihyo jumps to her next victim, he reacts in time unlike his pathetic ring leader, swinging wildly with his claws. Jihyo dodges to the left with ease, grabbing his arm and breaking it off. He doesn't even get to scream before Jihyo rips his head off. She lets the body parts fall and beckons for the others to attack her.

Eight, Seven and Six have the right idea, surrounding her and coming at her together. It doesn't matter though, Jihyo waits until they're close enough, jumping up and allowing them to crash into to each other. Their groans reach Jihyo's ears and she grins. She pushes herself down, landing on eight and six, and instantly they're dead. Seven is on the ground in front of Jihyo and she can sense the fear off of her.

"W-wai-" She stutters in fear.

"No," Jihyo ignores the plea and Seven's head is gone in an instant.

Five, Four, Three and Two all look scared out of the wits but run at Jihyo regardless. She lets one of them closer than usual and smirks at Five when his eyes light up. She lets her bandaged arm slam into him and keeps it there as he screams into non-existence. She flings Three and Four into a heap next to Seven's body before she turns to Two. Five, at this point, doesn't exist anymore, so she uses an arm to grab Two and the other to remove her heart from her chest. She crushes the heart and leaves the devoid body to drop on the floor.

She turns back to see Three and Four trying to run away. This was one of the more pathetic attempts at getting rid of her, Jihyo has seen. She catches up to them in an instant, removing the burden of having a useless head for them. They land on the floor with a dull thud.

One left.

"Well if you look at that, now there's only you," Jihyo sees the shaken vampire and sighs, she really thought she trained her vampires better than this. "Now, now don't break down so quickly, I've trained you better than this." She says, pulling the vampire up.

"Sire's bond... I'm sorry Ma'am I was too weak to break it," The vampire rambles out.

Jihyo deflates and anger surges. She can't believe one of them would use their most sacred bond like this. She growls in fustration, before breathing out, removing herself from him.

"Are there any more of these traitors that didn't join?" Jihyo asks patiently.

"A-a few. I can tell you who they are." He stammers.

"Good, go round them up for me," He nods furiously before running out of the room to find the other culprits.

Jihyo goes back to her throne and sits back down. She surveys the room and cringes at the mess of body parts and blood. This is going to be a bitch to clean, maybe she should've been a bit more careful.

She's going to be late for the meeting, but first she needs to deal with some annoyances.

//

Jihyo was supposed to be here twenty-five minutes ago but instead Dahyun is stuck in a room with a visibly annoyed vampire.

Dahyun and Chaeyoung stare at each other. Neither willing to speak first. Dahyun knows Chaeyoung visited Tzuyu, she knows it wasn't a pleasant chat but she also knows both Tzuyu and Momo are pretending it never happened, so she does too. Chaeyoung knows Dahyun is aware of Tzuyu's crimes, yet she's still protecting her.

Dahyun sees the fire in Chaeyoung's eyes.

Chaeyoung sees absolutely nothing in Dahyun's.

Someone clears their throat and they both turn in unison at the sound. It's Joohyun, wearing her witches hat even though they're inside, and an even smaller body clinging on to her back like a backpack.

"Yeri, get off of me, and say hi to Dahyun and Chaeyoung." Joohyun says tiredly, trying to pull the girl off of her.

"Chae?" A head pops up and shining eyes make the way to stare at both Dahyun and Chaeyoung. She removes herself from Joohyun at the speed of light and runs towards Chaeyoung.

"Yeri! I missed you!" Chaeyoung laughs, walking forward to capture the small girl in a tight embrace.

Dahyun is positively confused at the change of demeanor that Chaeyoung has gone through. The anger is gone from her and it has been replaced with warmth and love for the tiny witch. All Dahyun has seen from Chaeyoung was anger and bitterness, to see her swinging Yeri around playfully leaves Dahyun in shock. She's driven from her thoughts though when she's greeted by the old witch.

"Dahyun," Irene remarks,

"Irene," Dahyun gives a wide smile, knowing what comes next.

"You go on _one_ mission undercover and get caught by _one_ cleric and then you get stuck with a fake name for the rest of eternity." Joohyun rants, pulling off her hat and making it disappear. She clicks her fingers, and a chair immediately moves to her.

Dahyun gasps in shock.

"I thought you were glad to be caught by me, I'm offended." Dahyun speaks sadly, covering her eyes with her hands. Joohyun rolls her eyes and sits down elegantly.

"Dahyunnie, don't be sad, look, I learnt something new!" Yeri tugs at her robes, with a flower in her hand.

She waves overs the flower muttering out a spell. She watches as the flower folds into itself for bursting out in transformation as a small butterfly. Dahyun can't help but admire its beauty and its pure white wings. She's about to touch it when it turns to a ball of water and crashes into her face. Choked back laughter and giggles fill the room.

Dahyun blinks, wiping the water from her face. She should've expected this. She sees Joohyun and even Chaeyoung trying to hide their laughter but they're both failing miserably. She turns to a giggling Yeri and kneels down to her.

"I'm impressed! Good job, Yeri," Dahyun ruffles Yeri's hair. "Now why don't you show me a drying spell?" Yeri nods rapidly, eager to show off her spells. She grabs onto Dahyun's hands and mutters the spell.

While Yeri does her magic, Dahyun hears the all too familar huff of her favourite werewolf.

"Jeongie! Where's the rest of your little pack?" Dahyun greets the entering werewolf, patting her now dry face and robes.

"Do you know how hard it is to herd twelve insane werewolves to one place? I left them behind with Haseul in charge," Jeongyeon grumbles.

"Uhm... Is that wise?" Dahyun grimaces. She remembers the last time Jeongyeon had left them alone, they had somehow managed to summon a demon and it had taken Haseul hostage.

"Nope," Jeongyeon says simply, flopping down on the first chair she sees.

Joohyun looks at them in confusion but doesn't comment, she instead pulls Yeri into her lap, who had begun to go up to Jeongyeon with another flower in hand. Chaeyoung pointedly ignores Jeongyeon's existence, instead she looks down into her lap. Jeongyeon doesn't seem to mind though, she instead makes herself comfortable.

Moments later, Jihyo and Nayeon walk in with a board.

"Ji, you're late," Chaeyoung grumbles unhappily.

"Sorry, I was handling something, but I'm here now, let's get this started. Dahyun, tell them your plan," Jihyo smiles warmly at Dahyun, motioning for her to start.

"Okay so you know how the capital has that really powerful army we probably won't be able to defeat? If we make them leave, we have better chances at taking over the capital and getting rid of the advisors!" Dahyun says excitedly, getting up to write on the board.

"How on earth are we going to manage to get that army to move? They only move in emergencies and we are definitely not big enough of a threat to be an emergency," Nayeon speaks next.

"Have you guys ever heard of the Tower?" Dahyun asks patiently.

There's shaking of heads and mumbling of no's.

"It's where the advisors keep their worst enemies, or people who know too much. If we break in and trigger an alarm the advisors would panic and send their best army to control the situation. Then we would have around one to two weeks to get rid of them." Dahyun continues, drawing out a tower and stick figure army.

"How do you know about this?"

"They sent my brother there, " Dahyun smiles weakly despite the heaviness of her words.

A momentary silence permeates the room but Dahyun continues anyways.

"So the plan is to sneak in, trigger the alarm and that's it!" Dahyun claps her hands and goes to sits back down. "Any questions?"

"Is that it?" Jeongyeon asks, a bit confused by the simplicity of the plan.

"Oh don't worry, I will go over the details with the people going, I already went through the specifics with Ji if you guys are worried though," Dahyun says.

Jeongyeon and Chaeyoung look at Jihyo for confirmation and she nods casually.

"Okay, now that the plan is settled, who's going?" Nayeon asks.

"I'll go, my senses are better than most of yours." Jeongyeon speaks first.

"Are you taking any members of your pack?" Jihyo speaks this time.

"God no, if you wanted to start a riot, then sure. Anything else, it probably ends in disaster." Dahyun nods gravely in agreement. Jihyo sees a shudder that passes through both Jeongyeon and Dahyun and her eyes furrow.

"Okay... no more wolves, any one else?" Jihyo asks hesitantly.

"Bring Sana. She has the best senses other than Ji," Chaeyoung speaks swiftly.

"Okay, Sana it is." Nayeon repeats, writing it on the board.

"Witches?" Jeongyeon asks, rocking back onto her chair, feet on the table.

"No we're more geared towards support and direct attacks," Joohyun says, covering Yeri's mouth when she moves to reply as well. Yeri licks the hand covering her, in return, causing Joohyun to scream slightly.

"Bring Momo," Dahyun says suddenly.

"Momo? But why? Doesn't she need to protect your queen?" Chaeyoung asks with an edge in her voice.

"You'll need her, she's good at finding things, and I'll be protecting Tzuyu," Dahyun says decisively, ignoring Chaeyoung's tone.

Chaeyoung huffs but doesn't retort.

No one else disagrees.

"So, Jeongyeon, Sana, and Momo. Anyone else?" Nayeon says.

"No. Leave it at those three, it's a stealth mission." Jihyo's voice overpowers the room.

With everyone nodding in agreement, the first phase of their plan is complete.

"While they're gone, the rest of us will work on gathering an army to take over the city. Any of you have any ideas?" Jihyo asks.

No one speaks until Chaeyoung jumps up from her spot.

"Jeongyeon, you said your pack can start a riot, right?" Chaeyoung's eyes light up.

"Yup," A bit surprised by the vampire's enthusiasm considering her attitude earlier.

"Would they be able to convince a city to go against the church?" Chaeyoung asks, visibly growing more excited by the second.

"Oh yeah definitely, it wouldn't be the first time," Jeongyeon says nonchalantly.

"Wait, what?" Chaeyoung asks, her excitement halted by her confusion.

"Do you remember that really big riot against the church last year?"

"That was them?" Nayeon butts in. She remembers the chaos that had occured and the damage that befell the city afterwards.

"Well specifically Yeojin started it but yeah Dahyun got them out before anyone realised,"

Chaeyoung taps her fingers on the table in contemplation at the new information presented to her. Her mind goes through thousands of scenarios within her head before she reaches a plan that satisfies her fully.

"I have a fantastic idea," Chaeyoung grins wildly.

//

_"Momo, bring a bird inside,"_

_"Why? It's a pretty dangerous place for a little robin,"_

_"I think she's in there."_

_"... I'll bring one."_

//

Momo, Jeongyeon and Sana stare up at the endless black, metal tower that they have to infiltrate. Momo thinks it doesn't really fit the aesthetic of the kingdom, with its incessant need to have white everywhere but she really can't fault its effectiveness. She hasn't found any reports of any escapes in its centuries old history and she thinks it says a lot about their chances of getting out alive and in one piece. Nevertheless, she's here with a vampire and a werewolf, ready to complete her orders. Dahyun had thankfully went through a more thorough plan with them just before they left, telling them where the control room was, how many knights to expect and rooms to avoid.

"Let's get this over with," Jeongyeon mutters, beginning to scale the tower. Sana winks at Momo before following Jeongyeon up the tower.

Momo whistles and immediately a bird flies out from the forest to greet her. She motions for the robin to sit on her shoulder and then begins her journey up. It's a relatively easy climb, considering that the prison holds the most dangerous enemies of the most poweful men in the kingdom but she assumes they were confident that no one would find this place because of the ancient magic they used. They however, didn't anticipate Momo's birds or Dahyun's knowledge. Momo grips the metal bars with ease, using her legs to jump up a few floors at a time.

They make it to their designated window in one piece, with Sana breaking the lock on it with ease. Before Sana can jump in, Jeongyeon pulls her back, pointing towards an approaching guard. Jeongyeon whistles, causing the guard to come closer to the window. Once he's near enough, she reaches in with speed and throws him out the window. With that, Jeongyeon jumps in, with both Momo and Sana following in turn.

The first few hundred metres to the cotnrol room are relatively peaceful, with no guards on sight. They stick to the walls and unlocked cells in case they need to hide.

"Stop, I hear someone approaching, get into that cell, now!" Sana whispers urgently, pushing the others into an empty cell and closing the door.

"There's two knights on the way to the control room," Jeongyeon whispers, remembering Dahyun's information.

"Can't you do your magical disappearing thing Chae told me about, Momo? She said that she couldn't even sense you," Sana groans.

"Nope, this isn't a garden or forest with natural energy. This is just a sad metal prison," Momo replies, kicking the wall and lets it ring to further her point.

"Then why are you even here?"

"Moral Support!" Momo grins. "Don't give me that look, I was joking. I have my bow, daggers and this robin!" She laughs, pointing to the robin on her head.

The robin chirps and Sana and Jeongyeon look at Momo with such disappointment that she thinks that they're going to send her to the time-out corner. Instead, the cell door blasts opens and they're greeted by a guard.

"Oh sh-" Before Jeongyeon can finish her words, the guard lays dead at their feet, a dagger pierced through his heart.

Momo doesn't say a word, just drags the body inside the cell. She looks up with a satisfied smile, to see both Sana and Jeongyeon in shock. She puts a finger to her lips to tell them to keep quiet before putting her head out of the cell door to check for more guards.

"We're nearly there, let's go." Momo motions for the two of them to leave first and she trails behind them, making sure they're aren't any guards behind them.

It doesn't take long for them to find the control room, but they find it guarded by only one knight.

"Where's the other one?" Jeongyeon asks.

"Doesn't matter, get rid of this one first." Momo says without hesitation, taking out her bow and firing an arrow at him.

The arrow fails to reach its mark, with the knight sensing its arrival and cutting it in half promptly with his drawn sword.

Momo rapidly fires arrows to the knight who deflects them as they come, moving forward as he does. Jeongyeon stands on guard in case he gets to close to Momo. Sana disappears from sight and appears behind him.

She shoves her sharpened claws into a weakness in the backplate of the armour, causing the knight to scream. She rolls her eyes, knights are always so dramatic. She removes her hand to taste the blood, and cringes.

"You should lay off the beer, Mister, it's not really good for you," Sana tuts. He roars at her but she steps back and moves to his side.

Sana aims at another weakness at the shoulder joint of the armour, but he rolls out of the way before she can strike. He stands back up, re-positioning his sword and shield, more comfortably. He charges towards Sana, but she stands her ground, not even changing her stance.

His charge ends with an arrow piercing his throat.

They move the body into the control room and Jeongyeon and Momo go about looking for the alarm while Sana acts as a lookout.

While Jeongyeon follows Dahyun's instructions, Momo wanders to the other side of the endless controls. She observes the myriad of buttons before she finds the right one. She hopes Dahyun's right because the others aren't going to be thrilled with what she's about to do.

Momo reaches for the button.

"Momo, what are you doing? That isn't the alarm!" Jeongyeon speaks urgently, a hand already on the actual alarm. Sana looks from her position at the door, at Momo with confusion.

"Oh I know, I'm sorry I had more orders, but don't worry, escaped prisoners would probably help distract the guards." Momo gives them a sheepish smile, pressing down on the button before the others could protest.

It happens quickly.

Sana slams Momo against the wall and Jeongyeon hurriedly pushes the alarm as well. Momo can hear a large commotion outside and she knows she hit the right button. There's no loud beeping like Momo expects, there isn't even a peep. All she hears is yelling and anger.

"Did Dahyun send us here to release her brother? Was the alarm a ruse?" Sana looks and sounds mad and Momo can't really blame her.

"Come on, we need to go," Jeongyeon says hurriedly, trying to pull Sana away.

"Not until she answers me," Her grip firm on Momo's jacket.

"Dahyun's brother isn't here. It's true the army would get dispatched if we set off the alarm but there's just also someone in here that can help us," Momo says calmly, staring Sana right into her eyes.

"Guys, Come o-" Jeongyeon tries again but is interrupted by the missing knight returning to his post. 

He looks at the scene in front of him and immediately goes to draw his sword. He doesn't get to as Jeongyeon rams into him. Both Sana and Momo ignore the fight, only focusing on each other.

"She said they sent him here, what do you mean he isn't he- Oh." Sana says in exasperation before the realisation hits her. "Why weren't we told about this?" Her grip slackens slightly but she still keeps her against the wall.

The knight pushes Jeongyeon off her and draws his sword quickly but Jeongyeon is quick to spring back up and hits down on his wrist causing him to drop it with a clatter. She grabs it before the kinght can and throws the sword next to Sana and Momo in an attempt to get the attention but they're too wrapped up in their own world. She growls, she'll just have to deal with this nuisance first.

"We'll explain later, I promise, right now we need to find this person. Please, Sana?" Momo uses her puppy eyes and she knows she told Dahyun and Tzuyu she would stop using it to get what she wants but she thinks this should be considered an emergency.

Sana visibly falters and then breathes out, trying to keep her composure.

Meanwhile, Jeongyeon avoids an incoming fist, moving down to a crouching position and wiping his legs out. The knight lands heavily but is up in an instant, landing a blow onto Jeongyeon's arm. Jeongyeon grins, grabbing onto the offending arm to hold him in place and kicking him powerfully. He barrels into the wall and he's down momentarily.

"Fine, but you and Dahyun both owe us an explanation." Sana says sternly, finally letting go of Momo.

"I know, I promise we will," Momo smiles warmly at her, and Sana can't help but smile back.

Jeongyeon sprints towards the shaken knight, and grabbing his head. His confusion is met with Jeongyeon grabbing his head and slamming it down against her knee. His eyes roll back and he's down for the count. She drops him unceremoniously against the floor, trying to keep her breathing in check.

"Are you guys done?" Jeongyeon wheezes, hands on her knees.

"Yup thanks, Jeongie, Let's go find my person!" Momo pats her on the back and removes the robin from her head

"Is that all you're going to say?" Jeongyeon says, throwing her hands in the air. Sana pets her head in sympathy.

"Find her," Momo whispers to the robin, ignoring Jeongyeon.

The bird sets off immediately and they take chase. They weave in and out of prisoners, with Sana and Jeongyeon dispatching any guards in their way. Momo focuses on her robin, not losing any sight of them. She jumps over a fallen prisoner and finds her bird circling over an unlocked door.

Her heartbeat quickens and threatens to burst from her chest. She quickly runs to the door with Jeongyeon and Sana on her tail. They find a lone figure, sitting in the middle of the room, ignoring the chaos outside. Once she hears the door open, she looks up to see Momo, Jeongyeon, and Sana. Her eyes light up in recognition.

"Momo?" The voice is weak but Momo recognises it immediately. The figure gets up slowly moving towards them.

"Your Majesty," Momo kneels to capture the weak figure in her embrace.

Her eyes furrow when she realises how small she's gotten. Her cheeks are hollow and Momo can tell that she hasn't had access to her powers in years. Anger and annoyance fills her body, fueling her hatred towards the advisors. How dare they treat her queen like this.

Sana and Jeongyeon look at each other in confusement before they look back at the skinny figure holding onto Momo for support.

"I've finally found you, Mina" Momo smiles softly, hands cupping her face, Mina smiles back.

"Wait, Mina, queen of the elves? I thought she died." Jeongyeon asks, exasperated. Sana nods fervently at Jeongyeon's words. They both have no clue on what was happening anymore.

"No, they wanted to try to control the elves with me as a hostage but no one ever came for me, so I feared the worse." Mina's soothing voice rings out. It's so soft and calm that Sana and Jeongyeon want nothing more but to listen more.

"Don't worry, Mina. Dahyun kept her promise, our people have been hidden away," Mina sighs in relief, melting into Momo.

"And little Tzuyu?" Mina asks.

"Little?! She's taller than the both of you!" Sana yells, then yelps in pain when Jeongyeon whacks her for being too loud.

"I watched her grandparents grow up, she'll always be little to me," Mina says with weak amusement.

"I'm her bodyguard now!" Momo says happily and Mina can't help but pat her head. She's missed Momo and her free nature.

"We have a lot of time to catch up later, come on we have to escape this place before the army arrives." Jeongyeon urges, looking out the hallway to see soldiers running around to try contain the vast amount of prisoners they set free.

"The army? What did you do to summon the army here?" Mina asks, confused.

"It's part of the plan, don't worry about it, let's go." Momo says, picking Mina up to carry her bridal-style.

They move steathily towards the window they came in from, avoiding the guards still wrestling with prisoners trying to escape. They arrive at the window without a hitch and Sana and Jeongyeon jump down first to secure the area. Momo looks down at the waiting vampire and werewolf and grins. She has a fantastic idea.

"Hey, Sana!" Momo calls out.

"What?"

"Catch," With that, Momo jumps out of the window with Mina.

They land in Sana' arms and the look of disbelief is replaced with shock when Momo kisses her cheek as a thank you. Momo smirks before getting off of Sana and Mina gives Momo a knowing look. It isn't the first time Mina's seen this tactic, and it most probably won't be the last.

Momo gives Mina a sly grin before following the others into the forest and away from the prison. Momo looks back to see the tower again but finds no tower in sight. She tilts her head in confusement but decides not to think too much about it. Ancent magic was weird enough as it is, trying to make sense of it would fry her brain.

"Time to split up! Momo straight, Jeong go right, I'm going left. Meet back at base," Sana yells quickly before speeding up and disappearing from sight.

Jeongyeon nods at Momo before turning into a wolf and leaving at the speed of light.

Momo continues leisurely on their chosen path, her power returning to her now that she's free from the metal prison. She's relieved, the prison sapped her of her powers and left her feeling more vulnerable than ever. She doesn't know how Mina's survived so long in a place like that.

The trees welcome her back and she bows slightly in acknowledgement.

"Still using robins, Momo?" Mina asks when a robin lands on Momo's shoulder, greeting Mina.

"They're cute! What's not to love? Also this one is the one who found you so you should thank them," Momo turns to her shoulder to see Mina playing with the bird.

"Thank you little one, may you be blessed with a bountiful harvest," The robin chirps happily at the blessing, rubbing their head against Mina's finger.

Mina taps Momo, signalling for her to let her down. Momo lets her down carefully, and goes to sit on the grass. She knows what's going to happen next.

"Finally," Mina sighs in relief, her feet planted into the grass for the first time in years.

She feels energy she's forgotten surge through her body, awakening her soul once more.

It's in her fingertips, her toes, her chest.

It's everywhere.

Momo sits cross-legged, watching and feeling the vast amounts of natural energy from the surrounding forest return to its rightful owner. She watches as Mina transform back into the powerful elf she's used to.

She hums contently, the robin, now on her head, nestles down to watch as well.

Their queen has returned.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next time: Jihyo and Dahyun talk about trust and kept promises and OT9 meet. 
> 
> fun fact: my favourite birds are robins! small, round, fluffy and they come in different colours!!


End file.
